Nearly one in five people have a disability, but just 2% of publicly available imagery depicts their lives. The photo company, alongside Oath and the National Disability Leadership Alliance, is working to change that.

In the stock photo world, images of people with disabilities tend to cluster at two poles. “They’re either depicted as superhuman or super pathetic,” says Rebecca Swift, Getty Images’ director of visual insights. “There doesn’t seem to be that broad range that you get with able-bodied people.”

Getty has seen searched for disability-related images spike in the past year–“wheelchair access” searches were up 371% from 2016 to 2017, and autism-related searches climbed 434%–and the issue of representation became impossible to ignore.

That also became clear to Oath, the parent company of Yahoo and Tumblr, as they were working to set up a website highlighting their work around accessibility in tech and having difficulty finding representative images. So the company, with consult from the National Disability Leadership Alliance, tapped Getty to help change the current representation paradigm from the inside out. Launched May 17, The Disability Collection, a new subcategory of Getty images, will feature people with disabilities in everyday settings.

What you notice first are people’s faces. In contrast to those common images that focus on a person’s hands gripping a wheelchair, or frame a blind person before a window to show what they can’t see–or depict the blur of a prosthetic leg as it strikes a track–the images in the new Getty collection focus on human interaction and people’s facial expressions.

Of course, there are challenges to capturing a range of disabilities. Visual media gravitates toward visual cues, but not all disabilities are necessarily visible. “That’s why the wheelchair tends to be the icon of disability,” Swift says. “This project for us as a business is about getting it all down and saying: Don’t just focus on wheelchairs. Think about the entire range, and think about how people with disabilities want to be depicted.”

For Getty, that meant building out a set of guidelines for photographers in their network to follow. They emphasize focusing on mundane moments from everyday–texting, taking selfies, grocery shopping. A lot of the guidelines come from focus groups with disability organizations that Oath hosted and shared with Getty. “We’ve taken input from a host of advocacy groups about how people in their communities want to be depicted,” Swift says.

Netflix has renewed Atypical, the critically acclaimed original series created, written and executive produced by Robia Rashid (How I Met Your Mother, Will & Grace) for a third season.

Atypical season 3 will feature 10 half-hour episodes.

In season two of the series, which launched in September 2018, Elsa and Doug faced the aftermath of their marriage crisis and Casey tried to adjust to her new school, while Sam prepared for life after graduation.

Academy Award winning producer Seth Gordon and Mary Rohlich, who have both worked on hit series and films including Baywatch, The Goldbergs and Horrible Bosses also executive produce alongside Rashid. Jennifer Jason Leigh, who stars as Elsa, also serves as a producer. Michelle Dean, who received her PhD from UCLA and worked at the UCLA Center for Autism and Research and Treatment before joining the faculty of CSU Channel Island, was also brought into the production to help guide an accurate depiction of autism spectrum disorder. The series is produced by Sony Pictures Television for Netflix.

Atypical is a coming of age story that follows Sam (played by Keir Gilchrist), an 18-year-old on the autistic spectrum as he searches for love and independence. While Sam is on his funny and emotional journey of self-discovery, the rest of his family must grapple with change in their own lives as they all struggle with the central theme: what does it really mean to be normal?

A crowded room quiets as Parker Thornton approaches the podium. He has been tasked with motivating Special Olympics Athlete Health Messengers to commit to being fit every day by working out more, eating healthy, and cutting down on soda.

He starts his speech by proclaiming the three words he says to himself in the mirror every day, “I’m happy, I’m healthy, and I feel fantastic!” Parker let those familiar words calm his nerves at speaking in front of the large crowd. After the speech has concluded, the audience erupts into applause, motivated and encouraged to take on the challenge of living a healthy life.

Parker’s life didn’t start at peak health. As a newborn, he contracted viral meningitis and was hospitalized at Boston’s Children’s Hospital for five weeks, much of it on life support. He survived his first challenge, but the result of the viral meningitis left Parker with significant learning disabilities, which resulted in an anxiety disorder and depression.

When Parker was eight years old, he was introduced to Special Olympics New Hampshire when local families came together to start a ski team for children with intellectual disabilities. That introduction has led to more than 28 years of involvement with Special Olympics. Parker has won numerous gold medals in sports ranging from basketball, golf, skiing, and pentathlons. “I realized that Special Olympics was more than just sports; it taught me how to be a better man, a proficient communicator, and how to be a mentor to other athletes who have their own challenges. Special Olympics tells you how to speak up, get healthy to be a better athlete, and blossom gifts in yourself and others,” Parker said.

Parker recently had an opportunity to make his own life healthier. “I wasn’t happy with my body, and I was depressed,” Parker said. He signed up for a sprint triathlon, which motivated him to train for seven months. Parker lost 20 pounds and was able to go off prescribed medication. Seeing a positive change in his body and completing the triathlon showed Parker that even if it takes hard work, he can accomplish whatever he sets his mind to.

Parker has set his mind to tackling new challenges in the last few years. He speaks frequently on topics related to disabilities, Special Olympics, and the health disparities of people with disabilities. “Inclusive health is such a big issue. No one understands the health differences between people with and without intellectual disabilities. I want to motivate and get people thinking about how they can make changes to better the lives of people with intellectual disabilities,” he said.

Parker is now a consultant for Special Olympics International. He lead an Athlete Health Messenger training for a new cohort of athlete leaders who are tasked with taking the charge for equal access to health for people with disabilities. He co-edits a monthly health newsletter that goes out to thousands of recipients and is continuously tasked with being called upon to give motivational speeches. Speaking fills Parker with a sense of purpose. He wants to motivate others to see people with intellectual disabilities as part of human diversity and should be celebrated as such.

Parker is planning on accomplishing his next goal in 2019: attending professional stunt school in California. “It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to get trained to do professional stunts like you see in the movies,” he said. “I can’t wait to see what’s next.”

The storefronts along Washington’s bustling H Street Northeast are lit up with familiar names and logos: Petco. Whole Foods. CVS.

There is also a Starbucks. Or, more specifically, S-T-A-R-B-U-C-K-S spelled out in the hand symbols of American Sign Language.

That fingerspelling is one way to spot the coffee giant’s first U.S. signing store, where 24 deaf, hard-of-hearing and hearing employees run the shop using ASL. The store debuts on Tuesday after being converted from a standard Starbucks location to make the design and technology more accessible. It’s a step, employees and advocates say, toward boosting employment opportunities for the deaf community while also immersing hearing individuals in deaf spaces. And it’s a show of support from one of the world’s largest corporate brands.

“My identity is accepted here,” said Crystal Harris, a barista at the signing store. “Deafness has many faces.”

The store is just blocks from Gallaudet University, a 150-year-old institution and the world’s only university designed for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. The shop mirrors Starbucks’s first signing store, which opened in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2016. Customers from the outside can spot “Starbucks” written out in fingerspelling beneath the main logo and on large table umbrellas. And on the inside, what may appear like any other Starbucks cafe has been specifically laid out and decorated to celebrate deaf culture.

One entire wall, for example, is covered by a multicolored mural commissioned by a deaf artist and Gallaudet faculty member. In fingerspelling, the mural depicts a lowercase “d,” representing deafness, an uppercase “D,” representing deaf identity, an eye to represent visual connections, a hand holding a coffee cup, and other symbols showing merging of deaf and hearing cultures.

Customers can communicate in ASL or write their orders on a tech pad. Rather than wait to hear their names called at the end of the bar, customers look up to a screen showing when their drinks are ready. The store was also remodeled to maximize light and open lines of sight — high top tables or tall stacks of cups, for example, limit visibility for people signing to each other. Non-signing customers are also encouraged to use visual cues. Rather than sign that the store didn’t carry chamomile tea, for example, one employee waved his hand across his neck — signaling “no” — and then pointed to a printed menu with other options.

Camille Hymes, Starbucks’s regional vice president for the Mid-Atlantic, said the company chose D.C. for its proximity to Gallaudet and because of the city’s ties to activism for the deaf community. Using the store as a profitable business model, Hymes said, Starbucks can be an example to other companies of “using our scale for good.”

Surfing enthusiasts know that Oahu’s waters offer waves for every ability level. Winter vacationers who are veteran surfers flock to the legendary North Shore; beginners hoping to catch their first wave stick to calmer waters in the south.

The disability community claims White Plains Beach, a serene park on leeward Oahu that has become ground zero for adaptive surfing.

At the heart of this surfing clan is AccessSurf, a small nonprofit that’s pioneering barrier-free ocean experiences for people with physical and cognitive disabilities.

“This is a program where everyone is accepted, everyone is included and everyone is very integrated,’’ said Cara Short, the executive director.

Vacationers can easily join the action, but be aware that spending one afternoon riding waves with these folks might get you hooked.

“They have become my ohana [family] from the moment I first met them, and they welcome me back every year with open arms,” Jeremy Levy of Parker, Colo., said in an email.

Levy, who is blind, said he couldn’t find anyone to teach him to surf until he connected with AccessSurf. Now his family schedules annual vacations around the organization’s Day on the Beach, a monthly event open to all. It’s usually the first Saturday of the month; check the organization’s event calendar as part of your trip planning.

If you go, you’ll be greeted with aloha spirit by a team of staff and volunteers — about 200 of them — whose passion and expertise have earned the program international acclaim. Serious competitors also travel to Oahu from all over the world to practice with this group.

Spike Kane, who has paralysis from the armpits down, regularly travels from Vista, Calif., to work out with AccessSurf.

“I already knew the mechanics of adaptive surfing, but I was only doing prone at the time,” he said, describing how he used to surf with a lot of assistance. “I didn’t know there was another way to adapt my board.”

Working with Short, he settled on a board modified with a chest riser to keep his head up and out of the water. With this adaptation, he was able to paddle out and push himself and his board up on a wave.

“I thought, ‘This is something I can do without a big load of people in the water panicking over me,’ ” he said. “From that moment on, I was, like, ‘This is the real deal. This is going to change my life.’ ”

Hailey Dawson likes to be photographed with her 3D-printed hand front and center. Sometimes she curls it into a fist and flexes her biceps. Other times she keeps it flat as a pancake, elbow bent into a classic dab.

However she holds it, the point is that it’s there and she wants you to look at it.

She’s gotten baseball fans around the country to pay attention to it, too, by throwing the first pitch at every MLB stadium to raise awareness of the need for affordable prosthetics. After she pitched at Angel Stadium in Anaheim on Sept. 16, the 30th and last stadium on her list, she completed what her family is calling her Journey to 30.

When Hailey was born, her right hand came out different than the left. The right had a pinky and a thumb, but the three fingers in the middle were missing — her “nubbins” as her family calls them. Poland syndrome, the genetic condition she was born with, inhibits the development of a chest muscle. This makes the affected side of the body smaller and in some cases, causes abnormalities in an individual’s fingers.

After her tour of baseball stadiums, which started in 2015, Hailey is looking towards the future. The 8-year-old says she’s ready for some vacation.

Her mom bursted her bubble on those vacation plans, though, during a phone call with Mashable in August.

Journey to 30

Hailey’s journey began when she threw the first pitch at a Baltimore Orioles baseball game. After tossing the ball to her favorite player, Manny Machado, the two celebrated with a fist bump. The experience made her so happy, her mom wrote to a second team to see if she could do it all over again, this time with the Washington Nationals. It took a little while for it to be arranged, but she eventually got an in for Game 4 of the 2017 World Series Game.

Justin Gallegos, a runner at University of Oregon, has made history by becoming the first professional athlete with cerebral palsy to sign with Nike. Gallegos, a junior with the school’s running club, made the announcement in an emotional video on his Instagram page.

Gallegos was finishing a race on Saturday when he was met by a camera crew, a bunch of his teammates and Nike’s Insights director, John Douglass, who told him of the deal. In the video posted to his social media account, Gallegos collapses out of pure joy as his peers applaud him.

“I was once a kid in leg braces who could barely put on foot in front of the other!” he wrote on Instagram. “Now I have signed a three year contract with Nike Running!”

A spokesperson with Nike confirmed to CBS News the signing of Gallegos. It was even more special because it landed on Cerebral Palsy Awareness Day. The condition is a neurological disorder that affects movement, motor skills and muscle tone.

Gallegos used a walker as a toddler and pre-schooler, and did physical therapy in order to improve his gait, according to Running Magazine. He began competing in long-distance running in high school and caught the attention of Nike, then helped the company develop a shoe designed for runners with disabilities.

Gallegos, who is aiming to run a half-marathon under two hours, calls this one of the most emotional moments in his seven years of running.

“Growing up with a disability, the thought of becoming a professional athlete is, as I have said before, like the thought of climbing Mt. Everest!”

“Thank you everyone for helping show the world that there is No Such Thing As A Disability!” he said.

The needs of adults with disabilities are frequently overlooked in the marketplace and when businesses are designing and promoting products and services. But a new report from the American Institutes for Research (AIR)—A Hidden Market: The Purchasing Power of People With Disabilities—finds that inclusive hiring practices and involving people with disabilities in product development and advertisement can help businesses access markets worth billions of dollars. AIR researchers Michelle Yin, Dahlia Shaewitz, Cynthia Overton, and Deeza-Mae Smith wrote the report and used data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.

While some industries—such as technology and fashion—have begun marketing to and developing products for people with disabilities, the potential of these consumers has not been fully realized.

“Our study finds that working-age adults with disabilities are a large and relatively untapped market for businesses in the U.S.,” Yin said. “We hope that this report is a starting point to help businesses better understand and serve this group of consumers with unique needs.”

There are about 64 million people with at least one disability in the United States, and approximately 35 percent of this population is of working age (ages 16–65) and earns income through employment or supplemental support and benefits. While working-age people with disabilities have, on average, a lower annual income than people without disabilities, the report finds they still have significant spending power:

The total disposable income for U.S. adults with disabilities is about $490 billion, which is comparable to other significant market segments, such as African Americans ($501 billion) and Hispanics ($582 billion). (Disposable income is what is left after taxes are paid.); and

Discretionary income for working-age people with disabilities is about $21 billion, which is greater than that of the African-American ($3 billion) and Hispanic ($16 billion) market segments, combined. (Discretionary income is the money remaining after deducting taxes, other mandatory charges, and spending on necessities, such as food and housing.)

“Even with a lower overall income, adults with disabilities, as a group, have a lot of spending power,” Shaewitz said. “However, understanding and serving these consumers may require business and industry to make changes to some of their practices.”

Hiring and retaining people with disabilities and involving them in the development and production of products and services will be an important strategy for accessing this market. Several companies, including Starbucks, Northrop Grumman, AT&T, and Ernst & Young, have increased their inclusive hiring practices, recognizing that hiring people with disabilities can improve the bottom line and increase customer loyalty.

The report also suggests including adults with disabilities in advertising and marketing efforts and training employees on working with and meeting the needs of those with disabilities.

Several U.S. companies are already demonstrating how being inclusive not only benefits people with disabilities but also helps the bottom line. For example, the report highlights clothing company Tommy Hilfiger, which developed an accessible clothing line that has design elements that are friendly to those with disabilities, including magnetic closures and adjustable sleeves and pant legs. In response to a request from a customer with cerebral palsy, Nike developed technology for its shoes that offers a wraparound zipper and adjustable top. And online retailer Zappos launched a dedicated website that sells shoes and clothing that are easily used by people with physical disabilities, and sensory-friendly clothing for people on the autism spectrum and those who live with nerve pain and tenderness.

About the American Institutes for Research
AIR is a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts behavioral and social science research and delivers technical assistance both domestically and internationally in the areas of health, education, and workforce productivity.

You may know Nyle DiMarco from America’s Next Top Model, where he was crowned the victor of the show’s 22nd season, in 2015. You may have seen DiMarco demonstrate perfect rhythm on Dancing With the Stars, where he went home with yet another grand prize. DiMarco, in short, is a winner.

But DiMarco, who is deaf, believes he owes his good fortune in life to a childhood experience: learning language — both spoken and signed — at an early age. Language acquisition, he says, helped him understand and engage with the world, which led to life-changing educational opportunities.

Now DiMarco is using his fame to try to help millions of deaf children around the world also gain access to language through his eponymous foundation. As part of that work, he appeared at the 2018 Social Good Summit in New York City to recognize International Day of Sign Languages and will appear at International Week of the Deaf, annual events that highlight the importance of access to sign language as part of achieving full human rights for deaf people.

Here are six things DiMarco wants you to understand about sign language and the importance of language acquisition for Deaf people:

1. You are a fierce advocate for early language acquisition among Deaf children. How did learning sign language at an early age change your life?

I was born into a large, multigenerational Deaf family — my great grandparents, grandparents, parents, and my two brothers are all Deaf. I am the fourth generation and have been exposed to American Sign Language and English since birth.

Knowing sign language saved my life. I was never alone. My entire family used sign language, so I never missed dinner table conversations. Growing up, I attended Deaf schools including Gallaudet University, the only Deaf university in the world. You could say it was a utopia for me.

With sign language, I was able to embrace my own identity as Deaf. I did not let being Deaf define me. Instead, I defined it.

2. Why is it often difficult for Deaf children to access sign language education?

Audism. Audism is a set of beliefs that include: hearing people are superior to Deaf people; Deaf people should be pitied for having futile and miserable lives; Deaf people should become like hearing people as much as possible; and that sign languages should be shunned. The stigma that notion has created positions sign language as a “lesser option” and pushes people consciously, or unconsciously, to prioritize hearing and speech therapies over sign language education. Materials and information become less available to the less popular option, and when you’re a new parent to a Deaf baby or child you look to the most available materials.

That is something my foundation, The Nyle DiMarco Foundation, is looking to change.

3. What myths about sign language and language acquisition are most harmful to the human rights of Deaf people?

In this bizarre world we live in, there are doctors, early interventionists, and audiologists that tell hearing parents not to expose their Deaf child to sign language because it will hinder their ability to learn English. That is a myth. A foundation in sign language helps your Deaf child learn how to read and write.

People believe that sign language is not a language. That is false. Sign language is a full language with its own grammar, syntax, and structure.

4. If you could immediately change anything about the representation of Deaf people and sign language in popular culture, what would it be?

Representation behind and in front of the camera. Empowering Deaf people as actors, writers, directors, producers, etc. There is no true representation if we’re not part of the stories being told — nothing about us without us. Sign language is being exploited and that only adds irreparable errors.

5. What does the International Week of the Deaf principle “nothing about us without us” mean to you?

It means that society needs to empower Deaf people as decision makers. This is true for every minority group. In order to improve our society as a whole, every marginalized group needs to be included in the conversation whether it’s political, social, or within the entertainment industry. I know that is easier said than done, but I feel like people are taking charge of their cultural and personal narratives more and more and it’s inspiring to see that.

For the first time ever, New York City Transit will have a dedicated accessibility chief.

On Monday, NYCT President Andy Byford announced the appointment of Alex Elegudin as Senior Advisor for Systemwide Accessibility. He’ll be tasked with overseeing and implementing the Fast Forward Plan initiative to expand accessibility to subway and bus customers, as well as improve Access-A-Ride service.

Elegudin, a longtime accessibility advocate, will serve as MTA NYC Transit’s innaugural Senior Advisor for Systemwide Accessibility, an executive-level position reporting directly to President Byford. His first day on the job is Monday, June 25.

“Advancing the cause of accessibility is one of my top priorities and Alex’s new role will pull together all of our accessibility-related work streams, touching all Fast Forward projects and all NYC Transit departments,” President Byford said.

“I’m incredibly excited to be joining President Byford’s executive team,” Elegudin said. “The vision set forth in the ‘Fast Forward’ plan will make NYC Transit work better for New Yorkers of all abilities, with a strong emphasis on improving accessibility quickly. I look forward to being a part of making the plan a reality and helping to make New York City the most accessible city in the world.”

“Expanding accessibility is a priority for all MTA agencies, with the subway serving millions of people a day having particular urgency,” said MTA Chairman Joseph Lhota, who has convened a special working group of MTA Board members to advise on improving accessibility. “President Byford’s creation of this new position and Alex’s appointment are a victory for all of our customers who need more accessible subway, bus and paratransit service.”

The Baltimore Orioles want everyone to be able to root, root, root for the home team.

On Tuesday, as they faced off against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Orioles became the first professional sports team to wear jerseys with braille lettering at a game, according to Sports Illustrated.

The fashion statement honored the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), which relocated its headquarters to Baltimore 40 years ago, SI reported.

The team’s efforts at inclusion did not stop with the special apparel. Carlos Ibay, a blind concert pianist, performed the national anthem, and Mark Riccobono, the NFB president, threw out the first pitch, The Washington Postreported. The Maryland team passed out cards with the braille alphabet to attendees.

The team hosted 95-year-old Merle Caples, a blind World War II veteran, on the field, according to its Twitter account. She told The Baltimore Sunthat she gets her baseball fix by listening to the radio announcers.

“They are my eyes; they paint a picture for me,” Caples said. “It’s like I’m sitting behind home plate.”

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